Bicycle Touring Basics
by Aaron Teasdale on December 16, 2013 in Aaron Teasdale, Adventure Cycling
It’s a proven scientific fact that riding bicycles is inherently fun. Sure, the only actual evidence is the smiles and laughter of bike-riding people across the world—but what more proof do you need? Pedaling bicycles makes us feel like kids again, heading off to explore a big world. In our well-fed, climate-controlled modern lives, every bike ride offers its own adventure.
AT on Old BridgeMost of the time that adventure involves a spin through the woods or bike path or even city. Wherever we ride we come home feeling rejuvenated and alive, our soul lifted. It’s good, but it’s just a taste of what’s possible. Bicycles are at their best, their most happiness-producing, when they’re used for travel. People ride across the entire country on their bikes. Some even ride around the world (start banking your sick days now!). There are bike-touring routes in virtually every state in the U.S. and province in Canada. It’s a healthy, invigorating, social way to travel. Everyone will want to talk to you about where you’re from and where you’re going. You’ll be invited to people’s homes for dinner. You’ll get strong and lean. You’ll feel great.
Unless you don’t. Bicycle touring isn’t nearly as difficult or complicated as most people think it is, but without the proper planning you might feel anything but great. Exhaustion, unsafe routes, mechanical breakdowns, and alien abductions can all ruin an otherwise great trip. I can’t help much with aliens, but I can help you avoid the other stuff and have a great tour, whether it takes you through local backroads or the boonies of Bangladesh.
First decide what type of trip you want to take. Do you prefer mountain biking or road biking? Do you relish the self-reliance of riding self-supported and carrying all of your own camping and cooking gear? Or do you covet the comforts of hotels and traveling light? Do you have an entire summer to travel or just the weekend?
If you’ve got lots of time—because you just graduated college, retired, got laid off, or are having a mid-life existential crisis (hey, it happens, and a long bike tour is much healthier option than a sports car and toupee)—then get yourself a decent bike, some route maps from Adventure Cycling Association, and ride across the ol’ USA. Note: more on preparing for long tours in a future post.
Cyclist on Top of the WorldIf you’re like most people, you have anywhere from a week to a weekend for a bike trip. Pavement pounders who don’t like carrying a bunch of stuff can always B&B hop, otherwise known as credit-card touring. This is possible for mountain bikers, too, in places with hut systems or other lodgings. But most people going on short tours end up camping and carrying stuff like tents, sleeping bags, etc. It adds weight to your steed, but you can’t beat waking up in a beautiful campsite after a day of riding, sipping coffee over a campfire, and then heading out to do it all over again. Your life gets reduced to riding, eating, campfires, and sleeping in gorgeous places. Try it for a few days and I think you’ll agree that life doesn’t get much better.
You have a few options for carrying your stuff. Racks and panniers are the traditional technique, and they work fine. Trailers are the other primary option. The beauty of trailers is their simplicity—unlike racks and panniers, they fit virtually any bike and are a breeze to connect and disconnect. They’re also spacious, which makes packing easy. Just throw your gear in and go. Okay, so there’s actually a bit more to perfect packing than this, but we’ll talk about that in a future post.
Next time I’ll talk about how to prepare for your tour and what to bring. In the meantime, grab an atlas and start daydreaming.